


Rebuilding

by Teaj



Category: The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
Genre: F/M, Memory Loss, Regaining Memories, post bowt
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-07-10
Updated: 2017-08-02
Packaged: 2018-11-30 21:35:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 8,408
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11472138
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Teaj/pseuds/Teaj
Summary: Calamity Ganon has been defeated, but what does that mean for our hero? Zelda wishes to rebuild Hyrule, while Link wishes only to rebuild his memories and find who he really is.





	1. A Long Ride

**Author's Note:**

> This is the first fan fic I've written, so please bare with me. Any feedback is greatly appreciated.

Defeating Ganon had been surreal. From the moment Link had activated that first tower until the end of his quest, he had been keenly aware of the presence in the castle looming over the land.

Now, he had Zelda on the back of his horse, Midnight, and they were heading to Kakariko. Zelda was exhausted, and he was not without injury himself. They needed rest before anything else. Zelda was leaning against his back as he rode, she had insisted they move immediately, but shortly after they set out she had fallen asleep. He didn’t want to wake her, so he had kept moving. He needed time to think, anyway.

It had been his job to face that beast. That was over… so now what? At the start of his quest he would not have even known his own name if Zelda hadn’t told him… he still barely knew anything about his past. Bits and pieces, sure. What he had read in old journals. What the few people that knew him before had told him. His life had been this quest for the last few months, often he had gone days without sleeping to complete it. Now, when he knew he should be feeling the most accomplished, he felt… empty.

He had simply done as he was told, from the moment he awoke. Go to the tower. Go to the Shrines. Go to Impa…. A list of things he must do, culminating in defeating Calamity Ganon.

From what he had been told, he was Zelda’s knight. The few memories he had… it hadn’t been easy, but…. He thought maybe he had enjoyed it towards the end. They must have been getting closer, she had stopped avoiding him after all. He felt like he had enjoyed it.

Personally, he felt… pulled to Zelda. It was a feeling he couldn’t quite describe. Perhaps it was because he mostly remembered her and barely anything else. Perhaps it was because saving her had been his end goal for so many months. It was hard to say.

“Do you really remember me?” The question stuck in his mind. Certainly, he had memories _of_   her. Was that the same? He felt as though he didn’t really know this princess, even though he knew he should. It stung a bit to know that so much of his old life had been lost. Perhaps while they restored the kingdom he would restore his memories. He could only hope.

Zelda shifted against his back and Link stopped Midnight as she woke with a start. “Wh-what? Where?” She looked around frantically, as though expecting something to jump out at her. “Oh…” As she regained her composure Link started moving again. They had just crossed Horwell bridge, Link suspected that the change in hoof falls may have awoken her.

“I’m sorry, I don’t know what came over me,” she said as they approached Eagus bridge, “I’m glad we haven’t come across any monsters yet. You probably need to rest before you fight again.”

She paused, as though waiting for a response. Link said nothing, simply kept moving. There had been a few monsters on the road, but now was not the time to tell the princess that. They were easy enough to avoid, and at their current rate they would be at Kakariko in no time.

“Hopefully you don’t have to fight again at all,” Zelda said, “It would be nice if all those monsters had vanished with Ganon, but I suppose that would be too much to wish for, wouldn’t it?”

A few minutes passed, Link could feel Zelda’s eyes on the back of his head. She was hoping he would talk to her, he knew, but he honestly didn’t know what to say. There wasn’t much to say at this point. When the road forked Link practically had to turn the horse around to take the new path. He could see the end of it, where the trail faded into the base of Sahasara Slope. It was a gentle climb, and while there was no road on the slope itself, it was the fastest way to the village from the castle.

The pair continued in silence as Midnight climbed the hill. Zelda would need her own steed. Perhaps the white one, Snowball, it looked a lot like her old horse, and was one of the best he had. After a short rest at Kakariko he would go to the Dueling peaks stable and get it out. He needed exercise anyway.

Link heard the thoughts he had been having creeping their way back, the doubts about his purpose, the questions he didn’t want to ask. He pushed him back down. He had to focus on the task at hand. Get the princess to Impa. Then…. He didn’t know.

He hated not knowing what was next. It had been his anchor for so long. He couldn’t remember the past, so he held to the goals of the future. They had been so clear.

At the top of the hill they entered the valley. Zelda had been silent for a while now, she had a lot to think about so Link couldn’t blame her, but she was always talking in the memories he had of her. He wanted that now. Something, anything, to be sure this was real. He opened his mouth to ask her how she was feeling just as she spoke.

“How is Impa?” She asked, “I know I said I was watching you, but… it’s not the same, you know? I know she’s much older now… that will be a little strange, I think. It will be good to see her in person, though. It’s been so long…. Well, I suppose that she must be doing alright. She’s well over 100 years old now, and if she weren’t then….” The princess lapsed into silence just as the gates of Kakariko came into view.

Link wasn’t sure if that was because she didn’t want to finish the thought, or because seeing the gates had shocked her. Just in front of Impa’s house Link stopped Midnight. It was midday and as he dismounted Dorian and Cado took a few cautious steps forward.

“Link i-is that…?” Dorian asked, staring at Zelda. Link offered Zelda a hand down from the horse and nodded at the two guards, it was clear they were shocked. Link gestured for Zelda to lead the way up the stairs, he followed a few steps behind her and watched as she slowly opened the door.


	2. Reunion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Zelda is reunited with Impa for the first time in 100 years, but everyone needs time to think and rest.

There was silence for a moment as Zelda walked into the room and Impa looked out from under her huge hat. Link stepped off to the side and stood near the door. He looked around the room and saw Paya cleaning again. He smiled slightly at her when she looked up, which caused her face to turn beet red as she quickly looked down again.

“Is it really you?” Impa asked, quietly, “Oh Princess, it has been so long.” Paya looked up from her cleaning and shot up so she was standing respectfully as she stared at Zelda. Link couldn’t quite read the emotion in her eyes. Maybe admiration?

Zelda smiled kindly at the old woman and nodded, “Yes. It’s me. Impa I missed you so much it has been much too long.”

Link shifted slightly uncomfortably, he couldn’t help but feel like the comment was directed at him, as so many similar ones had been. He felt a little bit defensive, after all he hadn’t chosen to sleep for so long. He was grateful to Zelda for saving him, but he wished it hadn’t taken so long for him to heal. Every year he had slept was a year too long.

Impa nodded in agreement with the princess. “You must be so tired after your ordeal. We will talk after you get some proper sleep.”

“Y-y-you… can use my bed!” Paya blurted out, her face reddening, “I-if you w-want to….”

Zelda smiled at the young girl. The two looked like they were around the same age, but, of course, Zelda was 100 years older. “That would be lovely, thank you…” Zelda waited for a name

“Oh! Um… I-I’m… P-P-Pa….Paya!” She sighed in relief as she finally got her name out. Link felt sorry for Paya, he could only imagine the stories Impa must have told her about Zelda. It had taken the nervous girl a while to be able to get through a conversation with him without stuttering, too.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Paya. I must admit I am rather tired.” She flashed a smiled at Link and laughed, “maybe I’ll sleep for 100 years this time.” When Link didn’t react her smile faded, she looked concerned… perhaps he should have said something. But what?

Link watched as Paya led the way to her room upstairs and Zelda disappeared after her. He could hear their footsteps up above… He looked at Impa and saw that she was grinning widely at him.

“Thank you, Link. You saved her, and all of us. You deserve a good night of rest as well, we’ll see one another in the morning.”

“I’ve rested enough,” Link said quietly, regardless, he headed for the door. Ostensibly to go to the Inn.

“Wait.” Link froze in the door frame. She must have heard him. He slowly turned, feeling a bit guilty about the comment. Her face was one of sympathy. “Link… you had a hard task and you took it on with no complaints. Perhaps it was unfair of us to expect you could do it, but you did. No one can blame you for how long the resurrection process took. None of us knew how long it would be. Go rest. You had a hard fight, I’m sure.”

Link nodded and left without another word. At the bottom of the stairs he saw that a few of the town’s people had come over. He faked a large yawn as he got to the bottom of the stairs and rubbed his eyes. People began questioning him as soon as he was within earshot, but he waved them off as he headed to the inn. Midnight had trotted away in all the commotion, but Link would find him tomorrow, he never went far.

It didn’t take much time for Link to check into the Inn and in theory he should have been sleeping in no time. When was the last time he had rested? It seemed like forever ago.

His eyes were heavy, but he found that he was simply staring at the ceiling, still in disbelief at what had happened today. They had really done it. It would not have been possible without Mipha, Revali, Urbosa, and Daruk. Were their spirits gone now? He hadn’t tried to use any of the gifts they had given him since the battle, he wasn’t sure if he still could.

He closed his eyes, trying to still his thoughts. He could test if Revali’s Gale still worked tomorrow, he would likely be spending a few days here anyway. That would be odd, he hadn’t spent more than a day or so in one place since he Awoke…. Technically since he could remember.

Link shook his head, the thought was unwelcome and he pushed it back down. He was lucky to be around, he knew he should be grateful. He was. Really.

Forcing himself to keep his mind as blank as possible, Link felt sleep slowly take hold.

***

_Link was running through the woods leading the mud stained Zelda. One of his few memories. They couldn’t run forever, they had known that. The running stretched on far longer than it should, until Zelda finally slipped. Link turned, expecting to see her on the ground, as he had seen her in his head so many times, blaming herself for everything._

_Except this time she wasn’t there. Link looked around, frantically searching for her._

_The sky began to darken and fog was spreading through the woods. Children’s laughter echoed in the distance from all around him._

_Link began running._

_Scattered among the trees were faces he didn’t know, watching him._

_Where was she? He had to find Zelda!_

_He turned on a whim and saw Mipha emerge from the darkness, smiling sweetly and holding out her arms to greet him_

_A spear appeared, piercing through her stomach. Her face was a mixture of pain and regret as her form disintegrated and the Waterblight came forward._

_Link reached to draw the Master sword, but as he grasped for the hilt, he found nothing but air._

_Then he fell. The world seemed to have vanished beneath him. The laughter was back, louder now, perhaps it had never left?_

_The dream faded into inky blackness as Link seemed to fall for eternity._

***

When Link awoke in the morning he simply blinked his eyes and got out of the bed. It took him only a minute to get ready and head towards Impa’s.

He would talk to Zelda in a few days. She had more important things to worry about than his memory.

He was a bit disappointed that the nightmares hadn’t ended with vanquishing Ganon, but even as he walked he could feel the dream fading from memory.

 _Maybe I just dreamed for too long before._ He thought, _But I know how to get memories back._


	3. Return

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After a few days in Kakariko, Link gets antsy and decides to go for a ride.

Link stared at the motionless Guardian….

It had been a couple days since he and Zelda had defeated Calamity Ganon, and while the Princess was resting in Kakariko and making plans with Impa Link had excused himself for a horseback ride. He had not spoken to Zelda yet.

Sometimes the guardians were slow to wake, it was best to be cautious….

Paya had stopped him on his way out, asking in her shaky way if he was alright. He had assured her that he would be fine, and as an afterthought added to let the others know that if he wasn’t back by nightfall then he would be back in a couple days, max. Before she could ask anymore he got on his black steed and rode out.

Drawing the Master Sword, it was dim, it didn’t sense Ganon’s presence…

He had immediately headed to the nearest guardian he knew of, leaving Midnight in a safe place, Link walked a decent distance to get here. This guardian had been active not long ago. It was one that Link had never bothered to take out in the first place. With the Blood Moon making his effort worthless he had stopped trying to destroy them unless he needed to.

Now it sat here, motionless. It seemed they had truly banished the evil that filled the land. The ‘regular’ monsters like Bokoblins, Moblins, Lynels, and so on, were still around, but Link suspected they had seen the last of the Blood Moon as well.

He would be able to make a real difference when he defeated his foes now. And, more importantly right now, Hyrule castle would be almost completely safe. He had vanquished most of the foes on his way to Ganon, and now that all the Guardians were down it would certainly be safe.

Was the black ooze gone as well? He could hope.

It took almost no time to get to Midnight and start heading towards Castle Town. Link’s mission was over, for now, Zelda needed rest before they could do anything else, but Link had had enough with resting. He wanted to know more about himself. He wanted to remember his childhood, his parents… During the battle against Ganon those things hadn’t mattered but now they could.

How was it that he and Mipha first met? What was his father’s name? Why had he chosen to become a knight? How had he first gotten the Master Sword? Every memory he had hinted at more, and he wanted to know what that “More” was.

He had traveled all over Hyrule and learned relatively little about his past.

He could see the castle in the distance, no longer did it have a looming shadow overhead, it just sat there, a sad abandoned ruin. When going to Ganon he had not had much time to look around, he had found Zelda and the Kings studies, but apart from those he had been too busy getting past all the monsters to really look around. There had to be something there.

Link tensed as he finally reached the gate of the ruined town. He expected the telltale red laser to appear on his chest at any moment. Dismounting, Link continued on foot. The dead guardians lay in the middle of the streets, the black ooze was gone… they really had killed him, hadn’t they?

Link went slowly through the town, it pulled on his heart, seeing the destroyed buildings. Link approached one and stepped over the burned and rotted door. The roof was collapsed, but Link could see something sticking out under it. Link tried to lift the beam, to no avail.

_ No problem, _ He thought, taking out the Sheikah slate he activated the Stasis rune. The technology really was something else, without the slate he would never have finished his quest. Giving the beam a few good whacks with his hammer it went flying once the rune released.

Link yelled in shock at what he saw, taking a step back. He supposed he shouldn’t be surprised… skeletons were a given in the end. He took a couple steps towards the bones and took a closer look. It was actually two skeletons, Link’s heart dropped. He hadn’t noticed the second one because it was so small. These wouldn’t have stood a chance against the Guardians… He shook his head. They’d clear out the ruins. Give everyone a proper burial.

Just before he looked away a glint caught his eye. One of the skeletons was wearing a necklace. Link knelt down and gently lifted it, taking a closer look.

He gasped as a now familiar feeling bubbled up. He remembered this person.


	4. A necklace

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Link remembers a part of his childhood

As a child, Link had loved running through Castle Town, racing the other kids and playing harmless pranks on one another. Link remembered running past this shop, it was a bakery and it smelled like heaven. On this day, he had just beaten the other kids in a race and they were laughing as they walked through the streets. Link stopped in front of the bakery and stared into the window, where he could see Blance taking a cake out of a giant stone oven.

The other kids kept running, but Link stayed and took in a huge breath. Blance turned as she set the cake down and spotted him through her display. She smiled sweetly and waved him in. Without hesitation Link opened the door and went up to the counter. “Hello Blance, how are you today?” he asked, smiling.

“I’m good, Link, and how is your father?”

Link pouted. “He went to Zora’s domain without me. I wanna see Mipha again!”

She laughed. “Well you are only six, little one. Maybe in a few years he’ll take you with him. Would you feel better about being left behind if I gave you a brownie?”

Link gasped and nodded ecstatically. “Yes please! I love your baking!”

Blance chuckled again and walked over to a small display stand she had, full of sweets. Plucking one off the tray she handed it to him. “So you really did meet the Princess Mipha, then? What’s she like?” 

“She’s really nice!” Link said, “And pretty! I hope I can meet her again soon, we didn’t get to play at all.” As he spoke, he stuffed the brownie in his mouth.

“Slow down little one, you’ll choke. You told your father all this, then?”

“Yep! But he said that this trip was already planned so he couldn’t take me. He  _ promised _ to take me next time, though.” As Link finished swallowing the brownie and cocked his head. “You have a new necklace, I like it.”

Blance reached her hand to her neck and touched the small golden pendant. It was a little heart with a tiny blue gem set in the middle of it. She was beaming as she did. “Clay gave it to me. We’re going to get married in a few months.”

“Oooh,” Link said, “are you going to make the cake? You make the best cakes.”

As Blance laughed, the memory faded.

Link was standing in the destroyed bakery. His face was wet, when he reached up to wipe it away he noticed that it wasn’t rain. He took a deep breath and calmed himself. How many of these people had he known? Maybe it was better not to remember.

No. He wanted this. Start here. He clearly had memories here. He must have known…. The child. He felt like there was a pit in his stomach at the thought.

_ Swallow your emotions. You aren’t a child, _ He thought to himself,  _ you’re the chosen hero. This… is nothing… _ Steeling himself, he looked around again. Knowing what part of this place had looked like in the past, he could see it in the ruins now. The counter was there. Stairs leading up over there. There was half a floor left standing there. They must have lived above the shop. Maybe he’d find something else to trigger a memory there. 

Testing each step as he went, Link climbed to the second floor. There wasn’t much here. A blackened dresser, the decrepit frame of a bed hanging off the edge of the floor. He went over to the dresser and opened it up. Moth eaten rags were all he found. He sighed. What had he been expecting?

Going back down the stairs he stepped on something that snapped loudly. Link flinched and looked around, certain an enemy would jump out and attack him. Nothing happened for a few moments and Link relaxed. He looked down at what he had broken.

A painting had fallen off the wall and landed at the foot of the stairs. How had he missed it before? Link knelt down to pick it up, maybe it would- it disintegrated in his hands.

This was foolish. He should go back to Kakariko. He could just  **ask** he didn’t need to do all this. Zelda knew him! Right? She could at least give him some direction.

Link looked at the sky. It was dark, the moon was rising. He suddenly felt exhausted. Maybe… just a nap… He’d think better afterwards.


	5. Ride back

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After a rest, Link has a relaxing ride back to Kakariko, though he's quite surprised when he arrives.

_ Link was hovering above Ash Swamp, watching himself fall just as Zelda discovered her power. He could hear the laughter once again. It was taunting him, he was sure. If only things had been different. If only he had been better. He watched from above as the life faded from his body, just as it did the scene twisted. The guardians began to wake up once again. As one unit they all pointed their lasers at Zelda and- _

_ “Trapped for eternity.” Link looked around, he was in darkness once again. _

_ “My patience has limits” Snippets of conversation flooded around him. _

_ “No tolerance for unfinished business” Everyone’s expectations. He had left them. _

_ “I’ve waited so long” They had been trapped while he slept. _

_ “Century-old…” _

_ “Far from finished” _

_ The blue flames that had surrounded the spirits of his friends were appearing around him, trapping him in a cone of fire just as he flinched back he heard something else. _

_ “Thank you,” “Good luck,” “Take good care…” “Oh, nevermind” the heat from the flames began to fade... _

***

Link awoke next to his now dead fire. He stretched and looked at the pale purple in the clouds. He had slept well, but now he needed to head back. As he gathered his things and got back on Midnight he looked around the ruined city.

It must truly have been grand in it’s hayday. Link replayed his memory in his mind, trying to see every detail as clear as possible. With a satisfied sigh Link hopped onto Midnight and they took off.

Link had grown used to allowing his horses to follow the paths, and was only barely keeping track of where they were. He would take the longer road back to Kakariko and pass the Dueling Peak stables on the way. Midnight deserved a nice pampered rest, and he still needed to get Snowball for Zelda.

The ride was mostly uneventful, he had run into some Bokoblins in the Outpost ruins which were quickly dispatched. It really seemed like a lot of the danger was gone, or maybe he had just gotten used to where the monsters rested? Regardless, he made good time and it was only just past noon when he reached the stable.

Link steered Midnight over towards Tasseren and nodded in greeting.

“Welcome!” Tasseren said, “Welcome to our fine stable! Do you want to register a horse? Take one out for a ride? How can I help?”

Link smiled at the stable head, “I have an odd request today, actually.” As Link spoke he dismounted and went over to the counter. “I need to board Midnight and take out two different horses.”

“Two?” Tasseren asked, “why’s that?” Rensa, his twin, was looking over now, clearly curious as well.

“I left a friend of mine in Kakariko,” Link explained, “she needs a horse so I plan to give her Snowball.”

Tasseren nodded, “Alright, and you want to switch out Midnight for…?” He was pulling a log.

“Epona,” Link answered, not even having to think about it. Epona was his best horse, and being with her always felt just right. The brown horse looked very similar to the one he had had 100 years ago in the one memory just before they had prepared to go to Mount Lanayru, the only difference being that her main and tail were white.

Link had pondered for a long time about which horse to take when he finally charged into Hyrule castle, and in the end he chose Midnight because he was the first horse Link had tamed, he was glad nothing had happened to him. 

Tasseren nodded. “Alright. You left Snowball here with us, but Epona is in Riverside, it’ll take about an hour for her to get here.”

Link nodded and went to sit by the fire to listen to the stories of the other travelers. It seemed to take no time at all for them to get Snowball saddled up and before too long Link heard the telltale clops of Epona being ridden to the stable by one of their stable hands.

It took no time at all for Link to take and mount Epona, and soon they were headed up the hill as he led Snowball by the reigns.

_ Snowball, _ He turned the name around in his head. It had been the only one to come to mind at the time,  _ Should I get Zelda to rename him? _

It was relaxing riding back to the village, and for the first time in days Link could feel his thoughts truly calming. Soon he entered the village and saw that there was more activity than usual down by the pond in the center of town. That was odd, but from the top of the hill he couldn’t see why. Link craned his neck as he went towards the center of town, trying to see what was going on.

As he neared the pond, the crowd parted and he saw Zelda kneeling in front of the goddess statue. She was wearing different clothes, it looked like a replica of her surveying outfit from 100 years ago. When Link had left yesterday she had still been borrowing Paya’s clothes, but it seemed that Claree had finished the special order that had been placed in the meantime.

He waited silently as she stood up and turned around, she looked like she had been crying. Her eyes grew wide as she saw him and she instantly ran over. “Link! Where did you go? I was worried.”

That was weird. Why would she have been worried about him? Surely she was well aware that he could take care of himself, and Kakariko was the safest place for her. He swallowed, still not really sure what to say to her. He looked over at the white horse as he searched for words. She seemed to take this for an answer.

“You were getting a horse?” She asked, seeming confused, “but why did you not tell anyone where you were going? As soon as you left Paya rushed in to tell everyone, worried you were going to do something foolish.”

Link looked around at the crowd around them. They were slowly dispersing out of respect, but it was clear they were still listening.

Zelda sighed and started walking towards Impa’s house, after a moment Link followed behind her. “You know you can talk to me, right? You’ve hardly said two words to me since we left Hyrule Field.” Upon entering the house Zelda went and sat in front of the painting of Ash Swamp. Link shuddered slightly at seeing the depiction. The princess’ expression softened slightly and she said, “please, tell me what’s wrong so I can help.”


	6. Talking

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Zelda finally gets Link to talk to her.

Link thought carefully before answering the princess, choosing his words before saying anything. She had asked before if he truly remembered her, and he told her he had.

He turned his head and looked at the painting, a painful reminder of one memory he almost wished he didn’t have. “There’s a lot I don’t remember.”

Zelda gave Link a sad look. “What do you remember? Perhaps I can help, once you became my knight we spent far more time together than apart. We need to restore the kingdom, but as we travel I’m certain I can help you remember everything about our time together.”

There was silence for a long minute as Zelda stared at his face. _Everything about our time together_ . _But not before. You knew my father was a knight, did you even know his name? Could you even help me with that much?_ He didn’t want to hurt the princess, so instead of saying anything he simply nodded.

Zelda didn’t look satisfied, it was pretty obvious he wasn’t happy with this solution. “And… perhaps you should begin a journal. Write down what you do remember, perhaps it will help bring back more.” She watched him for an answer.

“Yes, Princess,” Link said, looking away from the picture. She seemed to deflate as he called her by her title. Had he done something wrong? He stiffened slightly, not sure how to make it better. He took a breath and said, “I… don’t want to worry you. You will have a lot to do, this is for me to take care of.”

Zelda reached out and took Link’s hand, “If I had unlocked my power sooner the events of 100 years ago would have been very different. We wouldn’t have to rebuild our kingdom, the other Champions would still be with us, and you would have never needed the Shrine of Resurrection.” Link looked like he was about to say something but she continued. “However, unlike you, I have had 100 years to think about it. We cannot change the past, but we can help one another with our goals. Rebuilding the kingdom will take years, hopefully rebuilding your past will not. I _want_ to help you, Link.”

Link looked into Zelda’s eyes, they were sad. She clearly pitied him, but there was something else… guilt? Perhaps. It was one thing to say the past couldn’t be changed, but it was another thing to believe you were not at fault. He got the impression she wanted to do this as much for herself as for him. He nodded. “Alright.” He still wasn’t comfortable with the idea of talking to her, but… well he had been in the past. There was only one way past it.

“So what were you really doing? You weren’t gone so long getting a horse.”

Link nodded, “I thought I could unlock a memory in castle town.”

“And? Did you?”

He nodded again, smiling a little as he brought the memory back to the surface. “Going to a bakery as a kid.”

Zelda seemed to relax, as though relieved. “Oh thank the goddess. I was worried you might not have remembered any of your childhood. If you already have then recovering the rest shouldn’t be too hard. So, go on, what else do you remember.”

Link cast a sidelong glance at Impa, sitting silently on her pillow. Her hat had moved ever so slightly. She wanted to know, too. He wasn’t sure how she would react to the rest of the memories he had. She had been so relieved, but that was the only one he had of childhood.

He took a few more moments to order his thoughts, so as to tell her the memories in the order that they seem to have happened.

“You were appointing me your knight in ceremony, your heart wasn’t in it…”Zelda nodded enthusiastically, but her face fell a bit at his next words. “I remember the start, but not how we got there, or the end…. Then I met Revali in Rito Village… After that we were walking. You asked if I could hear the voice of the sword… I don’t know if I had.” Zelda was beginning to look crestfallen. Would it be better to lie? Make up things where she hadn’t been around? No. He pushed the thought away. That would help no one.

“Later I was on Vah Rudania with Daruk.” He didn’t feel like going into detail about these meetings, they were private. She probably knew when and why they had happened, but not what was said, he figured.

“At some point I found you alone at a shrine somehow. You wanted me to stop following you, but I didn’t… because next I came and found you with Urbosa.” How long apart had that been? He didn’t know. At least a day, probably must more. “You were attacked by Yiga… and we had a conversation on a mountain after a large monster attack…. Oh, at some point we were resting under a tree and you showed me the Silent Princess.” Zelda smiled lightly at the memory, Link suspected, “And tried to get me to eat a frog…” He hated to ask, “Did I?”

Zelda laughed, it was actually really nice to hear. “No, you were about to, but I stopped you because it was a joke. Do you remember anything else?”

“A conversation with Mipha. I suppose we met when I was a child… At one point in our travels we rested under a tree to wait out the rain. Then we were back in the castle, your father was upset.” Zelda looked like the comment stung her. He shook his head. “I met his spirit when I woke up. He was worried about you, and proud.”

Zelda nodded sadly, “The sealing power…”

Link shook his head and pulled out a journal. He had grabbed a few books when he was in the castle, hoping to find clues about himself. This one was the King’s private journal. He handed it to her. She looked down at it, confused, he would let her read it alone. He stood to go.

“Wait. Is that all you remember?”

Link shook his head and looked down. “You praying at the Spring of Power. Talking about and coming down from the mountain. Running away. Falling in battle. The message you gave the sword.” He said them matter of factly, pushing his emotions down.

Zelda looked a bit surprised at the last one, but simply said, “oh. I-I see.”

Link left just as he heard Impa shifting, doubtless she had words of wisdom for the princess.


	7. Playtime

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Link plays with Cottla and remembers a chance encounter

The sun was bright as Link walked down the steps. The crowd from before had fully dispersed.

“Hey!” He heard a familiar voice call. A smile broke out on his face as Cottla ran around the tree. “Mister! You wanna play again?”

Link found that his worries melted away as he knelt to speak with the young girl. “Sure. Hide and seek?”

Cottla giggled with glee. “Yeah!” As Link turned away and covered his eyes to count he heard her footfalls go up the hill.

It didn’t take him long to find her, but he walked around near where she was hiding, loudly wondering where she could possibly be. He asked a few of the chuckling townsfolk if they had seen her and, smiling along they always answered that she had either gone in a completely opposite direction, or that she must be invisible because they certainly had not!

Eventually Link shot his head into her view and yelled, “Gotcha!” as she burst out with laughter she had barely been containing.

After a few more rounds of this Link was sitting at the top of the tree at the main entrance to town. It had taken Cottla longer than he expected to find him, looking up hadn’t really occurred to her. He smiled down at her when she finally looked at the sky in exasperation and happened to spot him. They had both had a fit of giggles for a few minutes, her at finding him, him at her stunned little face.

Finally, she managed to say, “Come down, Mister!”

Link turned to climb down, to set a better example for the girl than jumping out of trees, and just as he did, he had a now familiar sensation.

***

Link was a year or two younger than he had been in the last memory. He was missing a tooth and sitting at the top of a tree in the courtyard of the castle, near one of the many reservoirs. He wasn’t supposed to be here, he knew, but he had followed his dad that morning.

Coming down the path from the castle Link saw a weird looking red Zora girl. He had seen Zora before, but this one looked much younger than the traders they got traveling through Castle town. She looked fun! As she neared the pond Link noticed that she hadn’t seen him, she was too busy looking behind her. Link giggled quietly as she sat by the pool and stuck her feet in the water. She looked to be at least a year or two older than him. But Link was pretty sure Zora aged weird? He didn’t know.

“Hi!” He called, making the girl jump as she looked around for the source. “Up here!” Link waved as the girl looked up, shocked.

“You should come down,” the girl said after a moment, “you could get hurt.”

Link jumped. He had done this many times, despite warnings he could get hurt. This time as he landed pain shot up his leg and he fell to his side. “Owowow.” He clutched his ankle he wasn’t sure what he had done, but it hurt!

“Careful,” the girl said, standing and walking over to him, she knelt down and started to look at his ankle. “What were you doing in the tree?”

“I... I followed Daddy, but he got lost so I climbed the tree instead.” The girl’s hands began to glow and the pain started to go away.

“Is that so?” the girl said, giving him a look.

Link looked away, “yup”

“Are you supposed to be here, little one?”

Link shook his head, sure he was in trouble.

The girl chuckled softly, and whispered, “neither am I. I’m Mipha, what’s your name?”

“I’m Link!”

As Link heard more footsteps coming down the hill, the memory faded.

***

Link blinked. He was laying on the ground under the tree, Cottla looking down at him worried. “Are you okay? You slipped.”

Link nodded and pushed himself up. It had been the first time he had had a memory while he wasn’t standing, if he had more like that it could be dangerous. He pushed the thought away and smiled at Cottla. “Still want to play?”

“YAA!” She yelled, “I’ma hide now!”


	8. Setting out again

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After finishing the planning, Link and Zelda start out on their journey.

The next few days were a whirlwind of activity. Zelda and Impa had started to make a plan, but before anything they needed to meet with the leaders of each of the other races. Impa had suggested that Zelda set up a summit with the leaders so that they would all be able to talk. Since Link had met all the leaders already it was assumed this would likely go smoothly, but Link wasn’t sure. He wanted to ask them questions, but he kept them to himself. Impa was over 100 years old and Zelda remembered what life had been like before. They knew what they were doing, right?

Eventually, the two horses were ready to go. It had been decided that Zelda would go and meet with each of the leaders in person and invite them to join her at Kakariko in two month’s time. That would give her and Link plenty of time to travel and give the invitation, and the Leaders would have time to prepare.

It was decided that the pair would go to the Zora first, as they would remember Zelda and believe her. Then they would visit the Goron, followed by a stop in the Lost Woods for Zelda to speak with the Deku tree, and then they would work there way over to the Rito Village before heading to the Garudo last.

Link was tempted to suggest they they use the teleportation ability of the Sheika Slate, but he had no reason to believe that it would be able to take an extra person. Plus, Zelda knew more about the Slate than he did so if she wasn’t saying anything it was likely that it wouldn’t work, he figured.

Now, he was sitting atop his favorite horse, and Zelda was on her new horse. The princess pat the creature’s neck gently and smiled at Link. They hadn’t spoken much since he had given her the journal, he’d spent a lot of time playing with Cottla and cooking with Koko. He helped the people around Kakariko a lot and had made many walks up to the Fairy Fountain. He didn’t feel like he was exactly avoiding the princess, but he was feeling rather cooped up. He hadn’t spent this long in one place before, that he could remember. It was maddening.

As everyone in the village wished them a good journey and they left, Link had to stop himself from pushing Epona to her limit for a little bit. He could tell that the horse was itching for a good run, too. But no, Impa had told him to stay near the princess. Currently he was a few feet behind her, watching her hair bounce and sway as the horse made its way down the path.

They rode in silence for most of the morning, but finally Zelda spoke. “You can ride next to me, you know.” Link shifted uncomfortably in his saddle, but didn’t spur his horse. Zelda sighed, “When you were first appointed as my knight you were always very formal. Making sure to be just behind me no matter how we were traveling. It drove me crazy, knowing you were always watching me silently, never voicing any opinions.” She looked over her shoulder at him, “eventually we did start to get along. After that point you would always walk and ride next to me, only staying behind me in the castle….” she turned back to face the path, “I’ve missed these past 100 years. Perhaps more than anyone else. I wasn’t sure if the Chamber of Resurrection would work, nor did I know what it would do to your mind. I was so happy when you finally heard my calls to wake you up. Finding that your memory was lost… it’s weighed on me heavily.”

She was silent after that, and Link thought about what she had said. Impa was here, Pura and Robbie, too. All the Zora were long lived… there were people that she must know. Despite that, Link had the impression that she felt as alone in the world as he had many times the last few months. He sped up a little bit until he was next to her, she looked over and smiled at him, a kind, gentle smile. He smiled back, the least he could do was put her at ease.

Zelda took a breath and exhaled sharply. “I haven’t thanked you for giving me that journal yet. Not properly. Nor for everything you went through to save us. I think answering any questions you have while we travel would be fair, don’t you?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one's a bit short, but the next one will be a bit longer than the others so bare with me.


	9. Chapter 9

Link had been grateful for the offer, but it took him a while to think of what to ask. He had so many questions about his past, about what Hyrule was like before, about _her_. Where could he even start? He almost chuckled when he decided.

“How did we meet?” Link finally asked.

Zelda was quiet for a moment, as though collecting her thoughts. When she started to tell the story Link could picture the scene in his mind, it felt the same as when he had regained a memory in the past, but far more gentle.

“I first heard about you when you came home with the Master Sword. It was never properly explained to me how you came to have it, but the entire castle was bustling when your father presented you to the king. You stood there like a statue, all eyes of the court on your sword.”

Link could see it in his mind, could feel the sweat that had run down his back. People were whispering as his father presented him. Some thought it was a fake sword, others were saying he must have stolen it. He tried to focus on the words his father had said, tried to picture his father at all, but it was like a smudge on a painting. He had the sense that the story was not entirely true.

“You had been training to be a knight already, and your father explained that you had done rigours training until you had heard the call of the sword, which had lead you right to it. After that I heard about you more than I saw you, though a couple times I’d see you training. Until you were assigned as my knight, then you seemed like a shadow… you trained for about three months before you became my knight, and you only had that position for about six before…”

Link nodded, trying to hold the image in his mind. He almost felt like he remembered it, but it was blurry. The King, Princess, and himself were clear, but he only had the vaguest image of other people being there at all. It was rather disheartening to know that so many of his memories were only from the last six months before he nearly died.

When Link looked over, Zelda seemed slightly more relaxed. “Thanks,” he said, flashing her a smile, which she returned.

“I’m sure the Zora have many stories about you, too. I know you met Mipha as a child.”

Link nodded, “I remembered that meeting the other day.”

“That’s fantastic! With luck, you’ll remember more every day now that you can focus on it.” Link gave her a weird look and she shook her head, “I can take care of most of the political stuff for now and you can focus on your memories. Besides, we have a lot of travel to do between points.”

Link glanced at the Sheika Slate on his hip again. Communication would be important. “Can the Slate only transport one?” he asked.

Zelda looked over and cocked her head, “I don’t know, actually. A fair amount of its functions seem to be exclusively for the Hero. We could always test it at-”

She was cut off by a scream for help from the woods next to them. Link spared only a glance around before Epona was shooting off into the woods. He saw a couple of girls running away from a trio of bokoblins. With no hesitation he had Epona fling him in the air and he took a shot at each monster’s head. They all dropped dead as he landed, drawing his sword and looking around for any other threats. Once he  was sure there were none, he looked at the women. They seemed fine so he got back on Epona as one of them was saying thanks. He nodded and turned to hurry back to Zelda, only to see that she had followed him.

Link stayed silent as Zelda jumped down to check and make sure the two women were actually safe, but he was thinking now. It would probably be a good idea to get Zelda a weapon as they continued to travel. He knew how dangerous it could be if you had nothing to protect you.

It wasn’t too long before they were on the road again. “I am sorry for leaving you like that,” he said. He was aware of the fact that protecting her was his first a duty as her knight, but he couldn’t ignore other people in trouble.

Zelda shook her head, “don’t be. In fact, I think this just tells us that we shouldn’t use the slate to travel. If we had, who knows what would have happened to those women.”

Link nodded, and they continued in silence for a few minutes.

“Did you have any more questions? Or maybe some ideas on how I can help you?”

Link looked at her for a long moment, before taking a deep breath. There was one question he had been meaning to ask since he had defeated Ganon. One thing that he wouldn’t have been _able_ to ask anyone else. Something he felt like he knew the answer to, but didn’t want to assume. “How close were we?”

Zelda’s face went red immediately. “Um… well… at first I didn’t like you much…but then… after a while I would say… we came to understand one another.” She at him from the side of her eye, “I… wouldn’t speak for you but… I would say… we could have been more than just friends given a little more time.”

Link was quiet for a long while, before he simply said “Oh.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Didn't go how I expected and ended up short again.

**Author's Note:**

> For now I plan to update Monday-Wednesday-Friday, but that may change. If it does I'll let you know.


End file.
